Shaggy the Vampire
by storylover sam
Summary: One night, Shaggy goes missing. After weeks of searching, the gang have to accept he's gone. But when Daphne's saved by an impossible stranger, she's amazed at what's underneath the hood...
1. Chapter 1 Bitten!

Shaggy the Vampire

**Chapter 1** – Bitten!

It was pouring rain and visibility was very low. Shaggy hurried on, raindrops pounding his jacket. He wished he had a hood as the water was running off his hair onto his face and dripping down his neck. His fringe was so water-logged that it kept hanging down and he was continually pushing it out of his eyes.

He checked his watch and found it was half-ten at night. "Oh, crap!" he said. He was really late! He'd been watching a movie with Scooby, only to find there was no popcorn in the house – and there was no way you could watch a movie without popcorn. _No_ way! So he'd hurried out to the shops to get some. However, it was a late night movie (one they'd seen before many times, "The Son of the Bride of the Ghost of Frankenstein") and it had been nearly nine when he left. Normally, he'd never dare to face a dark, cold night but they couldn't watch one of their favourite films without popcorn and, due to the _surprisingly_ large crowd (all wanting popcorn for a movie), he'd only just managed to get away. "Poor Scooby – he's had to go through a good quarter of the movie without popcorn!"

Unfortunately, Scooby never did get his popcorn and Shaggy never made it home that night.

High above, the creature watched through the darkness as the tall, brown haired boy walked down the alley. He never suspected what was there. They never do, thought the creature.

Standing up, it spread out its arms and swooped down through the rain and the dark, towards the tall boy in a sodden raincoat and carrying a shopping bag. He went down with a cry as the creature hit him and made no further sound…

**Notes**: Sorry, this is quite short but it was just a quick explanation to the rest of the story – plus, I felt it might be a more suspenseful way to introduce it like this. Also, "The Son of the Bride of the Ghost of Frankenstein" is from _13 Ghosts of Scooby Doo_ episode "That's Monstertainment" where they were facing Zomba.


	2. Chapter 2 Missing

Shaggy the Vampire

**Chapter 2** – Missing

"Police are still looking for the body of 17-year-old Norville Rogers, more commonly known as Shaggy. The young man was last seen purchasing popcorn from the local shop near his home on Monday the 15th shortly before he disappeared. A blood-stained jacket was found in an alley on his route home but there are no other leads. Please, if you have any information – contact the police at once."

Daphne stared glumly at the TV screen. It had been nearly three weeks since Shaggy had gone missing and the police had _nothing_ to go on. Out of the gang, Scooby had suffered the most from the loss of their friend – he mainly just lay on Shaggy's bed all day and wouldn't let anyone move anything in his room. The three remaining gang members were pretty miserable, too, but at least _they_ could find a reason to get up every morning. Daphne probably spent the most time with Scooby as she lived the closest – it was a 10 minute walk for her while Fred took an hour driving and Velma almost two by train and taxi. Velma had to travel a lot so she lived near the airport and Fred preferred staying in the city centre. Daphne, Shaggy and Scooby were more the suburb type.

They were all in Shaggy's apartment when the news came on. They'd managed to get Scooby to leave Shaggy's room sometimes to watch the news in the hope that it might cheer him up. However, there'd been no good news and they regretted doing it. But Scooby still came through in the hope that it'd change. What scared him most was whenever the 'blood stained jacket' was mentioned. Why was there blood on the jacket? They'd identified it as Shaggy's blood and it was mainly around the jacket's collar.

There'd been no trace of a weapon or blood anywhere else in the alley. There'd been no trace of anything at all. The police had said that they had absolutely no leads to go on – the jacket showed that Shaggy had been there and that was it. It was like he'd just vanished into thin air! The policeman didn't look hopeful whilst saying this and they suspected that the police were thinking of stopping the search. They hadn't said this to Scooby yet as they were afraid it would upset him more. The search for Shaggy was the only thing really that was keeping him going. Even if he'd lost his best friend, he still wanted to know what happened to him – knowing he was dead would be better than not knowing at all. At least they could have a funeral or memorial or _something_!

But there was nothing. The police had opened the alley again as they could find nothing else and Scooby had been wanting to go there to look around himself but the gang had refused to go with him and were actually taking it in turns to stay with him so he couldn't sneak off himself. Again, Daphne spent the most time there as she lived so close and actually spent nights there to keep an eye on him. Fred, being a writer, could work at Scooby's during the day but Velma, being a busy scientist, couldn't help on that point – she did, however, often phone up to make sure Scooby was there to answer and came up with ideas that might cheer him up. Sadly, they weren't working. Nothing was.

But it was on this night that Shaggy was found again. And his discovery would change a lot of lives…

After the newswoman went on to something else, Daphne turned off the TV. It was the ten o'clock news and she'd watched it to see if there was any change before going to bed. Before heading to her room, she wandered through the apartment, turning off lights and checking everything was off or locked up. Satisfied that everything was fine, she whispered 'good night' as she passed Scooby's door and checked he was asleep. Yes, there was the lump on Shaggy's bed, covered with the duvet. Smiling, she closed her bedroom door behind her and got into bed.

But about a minute later, she sat up. That's odd, she thought. Scooby doesn't normally sleep under the covers. He lay at the bottom where Shaggy's feet would have been – that's how he always used to sleep. Scooby didn't even _own_ a doggie basket. Shaggy had never let Scooby sleep under the covers if he could help it as he said the dog hairs were hard enough to get off the duvet, never mind the bedsheets and his pyjamas. So why would Scooby go under the covers now?

With a sinking feeling in her heart, Daphne got up and went to listen at Shaggy's bedroom door. There was no sound. No movement…not even any breathing. "Oh, no," whispered Daphne. She stalked over to the bed and grabbed the duvet cover.

There was nobody there. Just a big, soft pillow moulded into a large dog-like shape. "Oh, _no_!" moaned Daphne. "Why you little…" She threw the cover back and sat down. "But how did he get out? I checked on him only half an hour ago and he was _definitely_ here! Surely I'd have noticed him trying to sneak out? Well…I guess I'd better go after him. It's obvious where the little devil has gone."

She quickly got dressed and threw on an old raincoat as it was pouring outside again. In fact, it was exactly like the night Shaggy disappeared. Scooby hadn't even noticed. He was so intent on trying to find Shaggy that he never thought about being scared of the dark or the weather or the possibility of history repeating itself.

He peeked out from Shaggy's closet and saw Daphne leave to get dressed. Daphne had been right – she'd have noticed him trying to leave and Scooby knew that. So he'd tried another tactic. He'd hidden in the cloest and not moved, waiting for Daphne to check on him – then she'd notice he was missing and believe he'd got out. Knowing she'd go out after him, it was the perfect way to get out of the apartment and have help searching the alley. As they were both there, they may as well make a search.

The front door banged shut and Scooby breathed a sigh of relief. I'll give her a couple minutes to get ahead and then I'll catch her up. Poor Daphne, not knowing his plan, walked through the dark and the rain, rather scared to be walking alone at that time of night – heading to a dark alley where a friend of hers might have been killed. It wasn't a thrilling idea.

Although it was late, street lamps lit up the start of the alley and Daphne could see a good way in. The dark corners still scared her, though, but she wasn't about to abandon Scooby. So she headed in, keeping an eye on all the corners and watching for any movement. Little good would it do her…

**Notes**: Sorry this ending is a little abrupt but I'm wrote it at half eleven at night and I wanted to finish the chapter before bed. Plus, I don't want the chapters to be too long and it seemed like a nice stopping point.


	3. Chapter 3 Saved

Shaggy the Vampire

**Chapter 3** – Saved

It was after a few minutes that Daphne began to feel uneasy and chanced a look behind her. There was a man there, silently following her. He was some distance away but it was still unnerving, knowing that he was there.

She kept walking through the alley, looking around for some sign of Scooby, hoping he would show up so they could go. She chanced another look behind her – the man had acquired a companion and the two were walking along, side by side. She turned round again and nearly stopped dead. There were two guys ahead of her – who knew where they'd appeared from – and they were standing on either side of the alley, leaning on the walls. They were looking down at the ground, not paying any attention to her, but they were standing absolutely still as if they were waiting for something.

Daphne started to worry. She kept walking but she was watching the two guys in front and she could hear the two guys behind still following. You're okay, she thought. Just remember your martial arts training. As she approached the two in front, they suddenly moved. Daph slowed, startled, but kept walking. Then it all happened so fast! The two had launched at her and tried to grab her arms but she kicked out at one and punched the other. She turned to face the ones who had been following her – they'd managed to catch up to her pretty quickly – and she prepared to fight them.

She did all right, at first. She managed to give the guys a good fight and held them off but then one managed to grab her hair and pulled hard. She cried out and tried to grab the guy's hand to make him let go but he caught her wrist and managed to twist her arm up her back. One of the men in front of her pulled a knife and Daphne suddenly became very scared – she struggled and elbowed the guy holding her in the ribs with her free arm. He gasped but held her more roughly and threw her against a wall.

Holding her wrist and wincing, she looked up at the guys as they came closer and stared hopelessly at the knife. Now what? she thought. But it seemed someone had heard her as there was an angry shout and something dark suddenly whipped past. The five in the alley turned but it had disappeared. The four men looked at each other, confused and worried.

It happened again. This time, the dark shadow flew about 5 feet above them in the other direction. "What is that?" asked one of the men.

Before he could get an answer, the dark shadow came again – and the man who had spoken disappeared with a loud cry. The three remaining looked around for their buddy – and suddenly saw him flying through the air, screaming, until he hit a wall of boxes and lay lying in the mess. They were all looking around now. One of the men, obviously either the bravest or the most stupid, stepped forward and called out "Who's there?"

There was quiet for a minute before a large shadow appeared on the ground and wall. Turning to see who was casting it, they all saw a tall figure in a long, black cloak that covered the body and hid the face. The figure raised its head to show a pale chin and mouth, which opened to reveal two large fangs. The two men still standing close to Daphne started quivering and the man who had stepped forward gulped. The figure snarled, showing more of its fangs, before it launched at the man who'd stepped forward – they flew into a wall where the figure pinned the man by his throat. It bent its head over the side of the man's neck and the man let out a scream. One of his buddies picked up a bar of metal that was lying nearby and ran to help his friend. He hit the figure over the back as hard as he could but it didn't seem to hurt him – instead, the figure flung out an arm and sent the man flying.

The figure let go of the man he had trapped and turned to face the one he'd just beaten. He walked into the centre of the alley and stared round, as if challenging them to beat him. And they took the challenge. All four grabbed something nearly to use as a weapon and went for the figure – he didn't move until the last second, when he suddenly jumped and just kept going up. He landed a few feet away, closer to Daphne, who was still leaning against the wall. She gasped and the figure turned his head slightly towards her.

But then he was distracted by the attack of the four men. They couldn't touch him – he was too fast and too strong. At one point, he took two of them and threw them nearly half-way down the alley. Eventually, the one he'd pinned to the wall collapsed, holding on to his neck, and slowly crawled away as the fight continued.

Daphne, who had been unable to move from shock, came to her senses and decided to run whilst the going was good. She couldn't use the alley's entrance as the fight was taking place there so she had to go the other way. She took off at a swift run and one of the men, seeing this, left his two remaining buddies still fighting the hooded figure and took off after her.

Her shoes weren't really designed for running and he quickly caught up with her. He grabbed her arm but she kicked his shin and then punched him – he let go for a moment but then grabbed both her arms and the two of them struggled. Then something hit them. Literally. Daphne fell to the floor and the man who had grabbed her suddenly found himself flying down the alley.

Daphne stared after him, pleased he was gone, but then realised what must have happened. She slowly looked behind her and saw two legs all covered in black. Looking up, she saw the hooded figure all dressed in black. His hood still hid his face but she could see his mouth and fangs again and, even more disturbingly, there was blood on his teeth and lips. She looked back to where the fight had taken place – the two remaining men had now disappeared.

Daphne looked up again, scared. Who was this? Was he saving her from those men or saving her til last?

He held out his hand and she stared at it. Saving her? She took his hand but let go almost immediately – it felt rock solid and was ice cold. She decided to take a chance and took his hand, ignoring the cold shiver than ran through her, and he helped her up. They stood and stared at each other. Daphne went to speak but the figure looked away to the alley's entrance. Daphne looked, too, but there was nothing there. She turned back to the figure but he was gone…

**Notes**: Ugh! Sorry it took me a while to update but I was _really_ stuck. The idea for this chapter came from a mixture of the 1st _Spider-Man_ movie and the 1st _Twilight_ movie – I recently saw these films and that's how this chapter came around. Hope you enjoyed and I promise to update soon.


	4. Chapter 4 Discovery

Shaggy the Vampire

**Chapter 4** – Discovery

Daphne whirled round but the stranger was gone. "Wait!" she cried out, knowing it was probably useless as he was nowhere in sight. But she tried anyway. "Please! I…I just wanted to thank you for, for saving me." She stared round, waiting for him to appear but nobody came.

"You're welcome," came a voice from behind her. She gasped and turned to face him.

The stranger was there, the top half of his face still hidden, but she could see his mouth and it was now free of blood. She smiled at him. "Hello." He didn't answer. "Th-Thank you…for saving me. It was really kind of you."

"Well, like I said, you're welcome." He went to turn away but Daphne put a hand on his shoulder. "No, wait! Ah…" Although Daphne had a sense of unease as if she were in danger, for some reason she felt safe – she felt something familiar about this character and she wanted to know more about him. "Who are you?"

"You said you wanted to thank me and you have done. Now I must go."

"But who are you?" asked Daphne again. "What were you doing here? How did you know I was in danger? How did you do all that? Why…I have so many questions."

"You always were nosy," the stranger muttered and looked like he instantly regretted it.

"What?" She grabbed his arm to stop him leaving. "You know me? How? Do I know you?"

"…Yes, I know you. We used to be very close – but now that's over."

Daphne looked at him curiously. An idea was starting to form in her mind. "I think…I know who you are." She reached up to move his hood but he grabbed her wrists and stopped her. "…Are you a vampire?"

"What?"

"Well, after what's just happened, you can't be human," reasoned Daphne. "My friends and I often used to go ghost hunting and, whilst many of them were fakes, we still did research on different creatures – and from what I've seen, I'd say you were a vampire. The speed; the strength; the pale, hard, cold skin; the fangs; and you seemed to be biting that guy's neck, and you had blood on your teeth after. And everyone knows that vampires drink blood." She was babbling now, her words tripping over each other in her hurry to get them out, desperate to get answers and not let her mystery saver go.

The pale lips rose into a smile. "You always were clever." He stepped back a little. "You're right. I am a vampire. And yes, we do know each other. But we can't anymore – it's too dangerous."

"I don't care," said Daphne, firmly. "I'm sure I know who you are and what happened…Please show me who you are. Even if I'm wrong and I've got the wrong person, I'd still like to know who saved me."

The figure frowned but, to her surprise, slowly did what she asked. He pulled back the hood and she gasped. "Why, it _is_ you!..."

Meanwhile, where was Scooby? He'd waited a few moments after Daphne had gone and then had followed her out. He'd made sure to keep a good deal behind her whilst following to make sure she didn't see him. Unfortunately, though, he'd lost her when he was distracted by a group of people coming out of a pub. It was a hen party. They were all singing and dancing and just generally acting drunk. They headed off in the same direction Daphne had gone and that he was going – he didn't want to be seen so he had to quietly follow them, their slow pace holding him back.

When they got near the alley, however, one of the girls let out a scream. Scooby, who was some distance behind, forgot about staying hidden and ran up to see what was wrong. What he saw was a man sitting on the ground, holding onto his neck and looking like he was in great pain. There was blood all around his neck and spreading through his shirt. One of the women pulled out a phone and started asking for an ambulance. They were so shocked that none of them noticed the dog nearby.

Scooby was shocked, too, but he was also conscious of the smell. Not just the blood – there was another, horrible smell. Like something had gone stale. He could also smell traces of Daphne's scent. He carried on to the alley and both her scent and the stale smell increased.

He turned the corner and run into the alley. And skidded to a stop. There were all kinds of scents here – humans who'd passed by, old food and junk rotting, and Daphne's scent was very strong. She was actually just a few feet away, her back to him. But the strongest was the stale smell that seemed to be coming from the hooded figure Daphne was facing. It was almost overpowering.

Scooby crept forward and hid behind an old pile of boxes, scrunching up his nose. He watched carefully and heard Daphne asked the figure to remove his hood as she wanted to know who had saved her. Saved her? What had he missed? But his attention was on the stranger again as he removed his hood. He froze in shock. No – it couldn't be!

From several feet away, he heard Daphne gasp and whisper," Why, it _is_ you! Oh, Shaggy…!"

**Notes**: This chapter probably seems a little rushed and you're right. I was writing this at night and I just wanted to get finished and post it. The next chapter should be slightly slower.

And I've a question for the person who left a review saying Chapter 3 was intense? What exactly did you mean? Is that a good thing or a bad thing?


	5. Chapter 5 Revelation

Shaggy the Vampire

**Chapter 5** – Revelation

Shaggy looked at Daphne, sadly. "I'm sorry, Daphne."

Her eyebrows curved down in a confused arch. "What?"

"I'm sorry, Daph," he said her old nickname fondly, "but as you can see, we can't hang out anymore. It's too dangerous to be around me."

"Oh, don't be ridiculous," she laughed. "You're perfectly safe…?"

"No, I'm not! Like you said, I'm a vampire now – I drink blood!" he cried, waving his arms. "I'm…I have to feed every two days in order to survive. I can't risk being around someone that I care about."

"But I…Does it have to be human?"

"…No, I've been able to feed on animals, too. But the lure of human blood is pretty strong – sometimes I can't help it. I've…gone for a few homeless people."

"You…you've killed-?"

"No! No, no, no. I just took a small amount of blood and wiped their memories."

"You wiped their memories?"

"Yeah, I…I seem to be able to control people. If I maintain eye contact, it's like their mind goes blank and they're willing to do whatever I say."

"So the people you attacked-" he winced at the word but didn't say anything, "they can never report it as they won't remember. What about these guys?" She indicated the alley. Although the men were gone, her meaning was clear.

"I'll hunt them down and wipe their memories. I have a very good sense of smell now – I can easily trace where they went." The increasing noise from the front of the alley distracted him now. As well as smell, all his senses had been dramatically improved and his new hearing ability allowed him to hear sounds at a great distance (if he tried hard, he could hear several miles away). And right now, what he was hearing was an ambulance getting closer and closer. He knew that the guy with the bitten neck was near the alley entrance (along with some strange women wearing very strong perfume and smelling of beer).

"What is it?" Daphne asked, seeing he was preoccupied.

"We have to go – I'm hearing an ambulance getting closer and I imagine that the police will eventually arrive. _Neither_ of us want to be here when that happens."

"Right, okay," whispered Daphne. She looked rather dazed. Maybe the shock of all that had happened was settling in? "But what about Scooby?"

"…I don't understand."

"I only came here tonight because Scooby went missing. I thought he might have come here. He's been absolutely miserable since you disappeared – we've all been staying with him to keep him company and see he's okay. We also had to stop him from coming here, to this alley – he wanted to try and find some clue to help us find you – but we didn't think it was a good idea. Anyway, the police have finally left it and when I found Scoob had gone, I figured he'd be here. I don't know how he slipped by me but-"

"Scooby?" Shaggy whispered and Daphne looked at his pained expression. In his mind's eye, Shaggy was picturing him and his best friend playing together as they used to. "Is he okay?"

"Physically, he's fine but he misses you terribly…Maybe you could come home and see him?"

Shag looked down at her. "I miss him, too. I miss him and you and the rest of the gang, possibly even more than I miss food. But I can't come back! They'd never accept me as I am. I mean, look at me – I'm a monster! I'm a vampire!" he screeched, causing Daph to take a step back. He looked at her sadly. "What would Scooby say if he saw me now?"

"R'd say R'I don't rind," came a rumbly voice and the dog stepped forward into the light (_translation: I'd say I don't mind_).

**Notes**: I'm back! Sorry – I know it's been months but I had college occupying my time. I finally got in and I'm taking 4 Higher courses so I've been pretty busy. Anyway, to try and make up for it, I've added a couple chapters (and another for _The Masked Yule Ball_). Hope these are worth the wait. Please read and review!


	6. Chapter 6 Back Home

Shaggy the Vampire

**Chapter 6** – Back Home

Shaggy froze.

Here he was seeing his best friend again. After being joined at the hip for years to not seeing him for weeks and now…here he was again. Shaggy had spent the past three weeks not only trying to deal with his new body (and bloodlust) but he'd also been fretting over his friends: what they'd been doing, were they missing him, and how was Scooby doing without him?

He half-thought of fleeing but he felt something grab his arm – it turned out to be Daphne's hand. She'd obviously guessed he might flee and wanted to stop him. Not that she could really stop him but her hand was enough to make him stop and calm down.

"Rhaggy?" Scooby tipped his head sideways as he slowly walked forwards, looking very nervous. "Rhat's you, right?"

"Reah- I mean, yeah. It's me."

"Rhere have rou been?" (_translation: Where have you been?_)

"Oh, you know, just…been around." He made a weak chuckle which didn't lighten the mood but he was now more concerned about all the noise at the front of the alley. "Hey, uh, I'd love to chat but I think we really need to go."

The other two followed his gaze. "We could go to my place!" cried Daphne. "Well, no, not mine. Technically, it's yours – I've just been staying there."

"You've been staying in my apartment?" asked Shaggy.

"Just on odd nights to keep Scooby company." She glanced towards the alley again. "Come on, we'll have to use the back way and go around."

"I know a quicker way," Shaggy spoke quietly. At their questioning looks, he explained, "I could carry you two and get us there in two minutes."

"Really?" asked Daphne. She looked at Scooby, who nodded, and turned to Shaggy again. "Okay. We trust you."

Shaggy was surprised at this. He'd figured that, what with all their experiences of vampires, they'd have run a mile as soon as they knew what he was. Still.

"Okay. Come here." He helped Daphne climb onto his back, piggy-back style, and then picked Scooby up in his arms like he used to. Taking a few steps back, he took a run up towards the wall and then kept running up it. All the way to the roof and away. It was too dark for anyone to see and, even if they did notice something, he was gone too fast for them to know what it was.

He got them to the door in five minutes. Quickly scrambling inside, they locked the doors and closed all the curtains. Good thing too as, under the lights, Shaggy's pale, hard skin seemed to glow.

"You've kept this place well," approved Shaggy, wandering round and looking at his home. "Thanks for looking after it." He stopped when he saw his reflection in the hallway mirror and stepped closer, looking at his face closely. As well as new skin, his eyes were a brilliant red colour and his hair had darkened slightly to a more caramel/chocolate colour. His face had also thinned slightly; his cheeks had sunk in very low which made his cheekbones stick out and the skin below his eyes was slightly purple, like he hadn't slept. All in all, he looked rather handsome (in a sickly, ill-looking kind of way).

Sensing someone nearby, he turned to find Daphne had been staring at him. She jumped and blushed that she'd been caught, and quickly headed for the kitchen. "Are you hungry? Or…thirsty?"

Shaggy scoffed. "I don't think you'll have anything that I can eat." The strong scent coming from the kitchen shut him up. Following it, he found it belonged to some pieces of raw steak on a plate, covered in blood. Without realising, he started to drool and his fangs slid down to his bottom lip.

After taking the steak out of the freezer, Daphne had gone to the living-room to check on Scooby. He was sitting on the couch, watching TV, and seemed rather tense around the shoulders. His senses are stronger than mine, Daphne thought. I wonder if Shaggy smells strange to him?

Heading for the kitchen, she stopped when she saw Shaggy. His fangs were out and he was practically drooling over the steak. The way he stared at the plate of meat, he looked…like an animal. "Shaggy?" she asked, timidly.

His head popped up to face her but he hadn't lost the animalistic look. Daphne paled slightly, well aware that she might smell just as appetising as the meat. However, he retracted his fangs and pulled himself together. "Sorry, but…it smells really good."

She smiled back. "I bought those earlier at the butcher. I was gonna cook them for me and Scooby tonight but I figured _you_ might need them more."

"Yeah, thanks. I mean, it doesn't smell as good as fresh blood but it's pretty good for packaged food."

Daphne giggled. "Yeah. Your own food always tastes better than packet food. Packet food has _far_ too much salt."

At that point, Scooby came in and looked round. "R'I smell reak." (_translation: I smell steak_)

"Oh, hi, Scooby. I know we were planning on having steak for dinner but…how do you feel about giving it to Shaggy?"

"Rokay. Rhat will we have?"

"I'll make spaghetti."

Once dinner was ready, the three settled down to eat at the kitchen table. Rather than just grabbing the steaks and stuffing them in, Shaggy tried using cutlery to act human – but seeing as how he'd never acted human or polite around food, the others found this more strange than anything else.

Daphne found she couldn't stop staring at Shaggy: his new hair, the strange smell (not a bad smell) that she now noticed came from him, how the lights seemed to reflect and dance off his pale skin…

He sensed her staring again and looked up but rather than blushing, Daphne asked, "What happened?"

"What?"

"That night, when you went missing…what happened?"

Scooby looked up now as well. Shaggy looked uncomfortable. "Oh, that. You really wanna know?"

"Well, yeah. I mean, we've worried about you the past three weeks and when we _do_ find you, we find you're a vampire who almost killed those guys in the alley. And now you're home with us, eating bloody steaks. If you're gonna come back to us, Shaggy, I think we need to know what happened so we can help you."

Help me?" Shaggy scoffed. "I don't think there's a cure for this. Other than me dying…again." He saw their curious faces and sighed. "Okay. That night…"

He set down his fork and sat up straight. "Well, obviously, that was the last night of my human life. I'd gone out for popcorn as Scooby and I were watching a movie. I bought the popcorn and was heading back home through the alley when something big fell out of the air and hit me. I cried out in surprise and pain – I'd hit the ground pretty hard. And then the creature that hit me, the figure seemed human but it definitely wasn't, bit my neck and I…I was paralysed. I couldn't move. I just lay there as that thing fed from my neck."

"I thought I was going to die as he wasn't going to stop and I could feel myself getting weaker – but then there was this noise. Something rattled in the alley and the creature, I assume a vampire, looked up. Next thing I knew, he'd disappeared and I was left lying there, bleeding." Shaggy paused for a minute and looked so sad and lost that Daphne, imagining how her friend must have felt, took hold of his hand without thinking.

He looked at her but said nothing – just continued his story. "After several minutes, I was able to gather the strength to move. I crawled out of the alley into the street, looking for help. Everything was so distorted: my vision was blurred, my hearing was off – at times sounds were really clear and then they were very distant and echoed. I kept crawling until someone found me. I can't remember what they looked like, just a blur. I just acted on impulse – I launched at them and went for their neck, like the vampire had done to me. Only I didn't stop. When there was nothing left, I was able to stand and my senses had cleared. In fact, it was better. My vision was perfect, I could hear sounds that must have come from a couple miles away and my sense of smell must have been ten times better, like Scooby's. I also felt so much stronger and more confident."

"Then things went bad after that. I realised the person was dead and I was now a murderer. I had to cover my tracks so I took them and hid them in a nearby trash bin. Not very dignified, I know, but I was desperate. I was scared of being caught and what they might do to me. A couple days later, I stole this cloak from a store as I thought it'd be good for camouflage – I mainly hunted at night. I didn't want to hurt people and found that I could live off animal blood. I still felt bad as I'm a vegetarian – well, I was – but I figured it wasn't as bad. Plus, it would attract less attention than people going missing. I've been living on the streets since."

"Other than that first person, have you killed anyone else?"

"No. Like I said, I've gone for some homeless people but I haven't actually killed anyone."

"And you wiped their memories," remembered Daphne. "Those guys in the alley tonight? You said you'd go after them and wipe their memories?"

"Yeah. I'll…do it later."

"There's something I don't understand, though," said Daphne, frowning. "That vampire bit you – didn't drain you – and then you changed into a vampire. Yet you're bitten people without killing them and they…didn't change?"

"No. The first couple I kinda followed for a while but they seemed fine. Well, as fine as they could be."

"Then why did you change and they didn't?"

"I don't know," frowned Shaggy. "Maybe it's to do with the bite? I mean, my throat was left open and bleeding but when I go for someone, I heal the cut so it stops bleeding. My saliva makes the skin seal up and it leaves a tiny scar."

"Ew," said Daphne, wrinkling her nose. "Stop talking about salivating on people's necks."

"Sorry."

They were quiet for a while before Scooby spoke, "Rhat's it rike being a rampire?" (_translation: What's it like being a vampire?_)

"Er, well…apart from the blood thing, it's actually kinda cool. As you saw, my speed and strength is much better. That's probably the coolest thing. My senses are, like, way better. I can climb walls and jump amazing distances. It's exhilarating." As he spoke, he became more like the old Shaggy they knew – more open and friendly and ready to have a laugh. "The strangest thing is my appearance. I've changed so much."

"Yes, you have," said Daphne, somewhat dreamily. He was more confident, more attractive…Whoa, thought Daphne. Where am I going with this? This is my best friend and he's just become a vampire. I should be worried about him, not fantasying about him…

"What about all the vampire myths?" she asked, as a means to distract herself. "Can you go out in the sunlight? Do you have a reflection? What about garlic? You know, that kind of thing?"

"I've found that I _can_ go out in sunlight but it's very uncomfortable and hurts my eyes – but I borrowed a pair of sunglasses and they helped a lot. I've seen my reflection in mirrors and shop windows and I think the garlic thing must be a myth, too, as I've gone near it a few times and it hasn't bothered me."

"Ran you reat?" asked Scooby. (_translation: Can you eat?_)

"Food? Well, I've tried but…it doesn't taste of anything. And it doesn't fill me up like it used to. Only blood stops my hunger and, even then, human blood seems to be better than animals' blood."

"Rou rook tired," whined Scooby, looking at the purple bags under Shaggy's eyes and the lined expression.

"Oh, no," smiled Shaggy. "This is just how I look. I don't sleep."

"Ever?" asked Daphne.

"No, not at all. These past three weeks, I haven't slept or even felt tired. Mentally tired, yes, thinking about what's happened, but not physically." He looked up at the clock. "Hey, it's pretty late. Why don't you two go to sleep?"

"Rhat about rou?" asked Scooby.

"I'm gonna go find those guys from the alley and wipe their memories," Shag explained, standing up. "I'll come back later."

"So you're definitely coming back?" Daphne wanted to confirm. "Only we don't want to lose you again."

"Yeah, I'll come back." And with that, he disappeared from sight…

**Notes**: Apologies for keeping you waiting. I've been swept away with college and such.

I found this scene rather hard to write because I wasn't sure how to present it. I didn't want it to be too dark and heavy yet it wasn't supposed to sound cheesy either, going over the well-known vampire myths (and yes, if you're wondering, the non-sleeping bit comes from Twilight).

Hope you enjoyed the chapter and that it's worth the wait. Please review.


End file.
